Unwanted protection
by NotALifeToLive
Summary: What if heero had been called odin? What if the original odin was still alive? What if Zechs had cut Relena's hair? What if Heero and Relena met, and didn't like each other? What if Noin kept showing up in the timeline? Hey, wait a minute, you can find all that here!
1. The explosion

Chapter one: The explosion-

A stern glance matched the emotionless face of a nameless boy that would later be known as Heero Yuy II, named after the pacifistic Earth leader. But for now, he would just be a nameless eight year old assassin-in-training.

"Come here, boy," said the owner of those stern eyes. The boy had nothing left, but to walk over to the elderly doctor.

"Yes?" asked the boy, coldly.

J frowned at the boy's speed- swift and silent. "We're going to have to come up with a name for you. It makes no sense you living here, and having nothing to be called by."

The kid felt excitement (for he'd had a name before, he remembered, though what it had originally been escaped his mind long ago), but it hardly showed on his face.

"How about 'Odin'?" J continued on.

He frowned at that, not entirely annoyed at the suggestion. "Like master's name?" the new Odin asked.

"Like my what?" Came a new voice- the first and original Odin.

J was the one to answer. "I suggested the boy be given a name. I thought that Odin would be appropriate."

Odin shrugged. "I don't mind it. I think it suits you just fine," he then said to Odin II. "It'll be easier to remember, anyway."

Odin II nodded in agreement, after all, any name was better than none.

Right?

WRONG.

~0~

The Sanc kingdom was in peril- again. Terriorists had been attacking the pacifistic kingdom, preaching that the peace the kingdom upheld was a false order. And that they intended to kill each and every one of the false pacifists.

No one would be safe. Especially the royal family and their young daughter.

~0~

The first bomb was the loudest. It made seven year old Relena Peacecraft wake with a start, causing her to believe that it had all just been a terrible dream. That is, until the second one went off.

The scared little girl jumped to her feet, and ran from the room. Her older brother found her immediately. He had a backpack slung over his shoulder. "Come on, Relena, we've got to run," He said, grabbing her hand, and began running.

It wasn't easy trudging through the cold, waist-length snow. And it made it even harder for Milliardo when it started going passed Relena's head. He scooped her up onto his backpack.

"What about mom a dad?!" She coughed out, the wind making it hard to catch her breathe.

Milliardo shook his head. "I already checked them. I'm sorry, relena, they didn't make it."

She felt icy tears stream down her cold face, and that's where they froze. "Milliardo, what will they do to us, if they catch us?"

That was the last thing he wanted to tell her. "Nothing good," he put it simply.

That enlisted a small whimper from Relena.

They decided to catch their breathe beside a frozen stream, momentarily. Milliardo flipped his backpack to the ground and opened it up, pulling out a pair of scissors.

Relena flinched when he cut a piece of her hair off. "Trust me Relena," he whispered, reassuringly.

"What if I get too cold?" She asked lamely.

He shook his head, "I won't let that happen to you," he promised. At her visible hesitation, he added, "I'll protect you, Leyley."

She nodded softly. And he began cutting until it was only left at her shoulders.

"My turn to do your's," she said, taking the scissors from him. He frowned at that.

"How 'bout you cut my hair at the next stop." At the look of disbelief on her face, he continued, "We've been here too long, as it is."

She gave a small sigh of defeat. "Fine."

They continued down a trail that would lead to their eternal exile as prince and princess. They could never go home.

END OF CHAPTER ONE.


	2. The fork in the road

Chapter two: The fork in the road-

They'd been walking for hours. Relena's feet ached from trying to keep up with her big brother. She understood why they needed to be fast- but did they have to be so fast that her feet hurted?

Milliardo frowned at her speed. He wanted nothing more than to go home, wake up, and realize that this was a dream. But it wasn't. And there was no home to go back to, anyway.

No loving parents to take care of them. Nothing. He had Relena, and that was all. He thanked God that she was enough.

"It's getting dark. We need to find a place to camp for the night. Maybe we can get to the next village."

Relena was cold, tired, and hungry. And bitter. "Oh, so do you happen to know anyone that'd be ready to take in two orphan kids from the fugitive royal line of total pacifism, and risk a huge target on their back?"

Milliardo flushed. "Not exactly. But who knows? Besides, we're dead if we stay here. At least in the village, we'll be out of sight."

"Or we'll just be putting the village in danger," Relena reminded. "Don't forget we're fugitives."

He frowned at that. "You're right. I think we should go to the town and split up."

"Split up? Are you mad?!"

He shrugged. "Think about it, Relena. They're looking for TWO kids that fit our description. They don't think we'll dare split up. So, if we do, they'll be thrown off."

Relena sighed. It made sense, even if she didn't want to admit it. "Fine," she replied begrudgingly. "I hate it when you're right. But we've got to see each other again, Milliardo, or I refuse to do this."

He nodded. "Of course. You're my sister. I'll always come back to you."

She sighed. "I still don't like this."

He shrugged. "It's better than what most of the other kids got. A chance."

Relena didn't know what to say, so she didn't say anything.

Milliardo took her hand, giving her a gentle tug. "Come on. The sooner we leave, the better."

Odin stared on ahead of him. He was with his older counterpart, on a mission.

Apparently the Sanc kingdom had fallen. The kids of the royal family were missing, probably dead. But, it was their job to find out.

"So what do they look like anyway?" The young Odin asked.

Odin I thought about it for a few moments, "The girl's your age, a year younger even. The boys four years older. He's blonde, though unlike his sister, who has brown hair (A/n: when she was a kid, in the photograph of her when she was a baby, her hair's brunette, almost red). They've both got nile(nail)blue eyes."

Odin II nodded. "Fine," the boy sighed. He'd never admit to it, but he liked spending time with his namesake, whether it was for a mission or just alone at the base with Doctor J.

The older Odin felt similiarly. But the kid couldn't be told that. Who knows what it would do to the kid's training? No, it was tough love, for now. Still, the kid could be quite entertaining.

Odin II stared passerbys down, looking for a girl with bronze hair and blue eyes. Nile blue eyes. But no one came that matched that discription.

END OF CHAPTER TWO.


	3. Milliardo talks

Chapter three: Milliardo talks-

Relena shivered to herself with loneliness. Milliardo was to go his own way tomorrow, but in a way, it was like he'd already left.

He noticed the shiver. "Hey, what's wrong with you?" He asked his little sister. "Are you okay?"

She forced a smile to her face. "I'm fine," she lied. "Just a little cold."

He took his coat off and draped it around her shoulders. The warmth suddenly intoxicated her, sending her into tropical bliss.

As warm as his sister now was, there was a price to pay himself; coldness. He shivered uncontrollably, making Relena feel guilty.

She took his coat off, and tried to give it back to him. He shook his head. "No, you keep it. Your nightgown is thinner than my clothes."

She shook her head. "No, really! I'm all good."

After a moment, Milliardo took the coat gently from her hand, putting it back on. "Are you sure you're all good?" He double checked.

She nodded, resisting the urge to shudder from the temperature. "Yep, I'll be fine," she promised.

Relena kept this to herself, but she was starting to feel very tired. She shook that thought off.

No, it's just the cold, she reasoned. But how the snow beckoned her. She just wanted to run to, curl up, and fall asleep in the white winter.

Falling asleep couldn't hurt, could it?

The cold children wondered around for what felt like an hour.

Relena sighed into the cold, sending out fresh steam in front of her face, feeling more exhausted by the minute.

"Milliardo," she said suddenly, "I think I'm gonna go to sleep now. Don't worry, though, I don't think it'll be painful or anything."

He turned around, confused by her words. She gave him a small smile.

He frowned, not quite sure what she meant by that. He soon learned his answer when he saw her fall to her knees from the corner of his eye.

His eyes widened as his sister fainted, her pale body almost lost in the snow around her.

The last thing she heard, was the sound of him calling out her name.

The thought that he loved her just warmed her right up.

Milliardo, honest to God, had no idea what to do. Heck, he didn't even know was wrong with her, let alone why she fainted.

He found comfort in seeing new air float out in cold steam through her nose, in front of her face. He sighed in relief. She wasn't dead!

He took his coat off, dropping it around her shoulders. He scooped his sister up, her warmth isolating the cold away from him.

Milliardo forced himself to walk. Despite the warmth she created, she also created extra weight, but Milliardo wouldn't let his sister fall. Especially when she was all he had left.

He smiled at the unconscious weight in his arms. "Don't worry, Relena, I won't let anything happen to you. Even if it sentences me to death."

Relena wouldn't hear his words for a long time.

Milliardo stumbled into the town with the unconscious girl still clutched tightly to his chest.

A young woman came out of one of the first homes, gasping. She looked about his age, with black hair, cut short.

"Is she okay?" she muttered to him, eying the unconscious girl.

He shook his head. "Help?" He begged.

"Wait here!" She ran inside. A second later, another woman came out to help the royal children.

She smiled kindly at Milliardo. "Come inside, child," she spoke gently. "Lucrezia, help him."

The girl- Lucrezia- nodded swiftly. "Here, you must be tired. Let me."

She gently took Relena from Milliardo. He released her, albeit begrudgingly. "Please be careful with her. She's all I have left," he told her.

Lucrezia nodded. "Of course. Come inside, though. You barely look better off than her."

He nodded, awkwardly stepping into the house after her.

It was a cozy house, mainly in the color themes of creme and red. Very homely.

Lucrezia smiled at him as her mother took Relena from her. "Poor thing," The mother muttered.

Lucrezia went over to Milliardo. "So... what happened, exactly?" She asked curiously.

Milliardo was taken aback by the question. Lucrezia, who sensed his hesitstion, gasped. "Oh my God, was that a rude question?! I'm sorry. Just ignore me."

Milliardo found something cute about her. Maybe the age impression of shyness she left with him.

He laughed. He really laughed, for the first time since this whole thing started. "No, it's fine, really. Actually, we're from the Sanc kingdom," he admitted.

Her eyes widened in sadness for him. "I'm sorry," she whispered. "You don't have to talk about it, if it still hurts."

Milliardo sensed genuine pain coming from her. She wasn't just saying things. She meant them, too.

After an unbearable moment, she added, "Don't worry. I'm sure mom will get that girl healthy."

He smirked. "That's Relena, she's my sister," he supplied.

Lucrezia beamed back at him. "Relena, huh? What about you? What do they call you?"

Milliardo frowned. Would they still help Relena if they knew that they were the Peacecraft children? He couldn't take that chance.

"Zechs," he lied. "I am known as Zechs Marquise."

Lucrezia smiled at the new knowledge. "Well, I'm Lucrezia, but I prefer to be called Noin. After all, it's what the other soldiers used to call my father before he died."

Milliardo nodded, saddened for her. "Okay, Noin. Nice to meet you."

"Likewise."

They sealed their friendship with a handshake.


	4. Departing ways

Chapter four: Departing ways-

Milliardo- sorry, Zechs- was getting impatient. It had been three days. Noin had assured him that her mother believed that Relena's hypothermia had gone down. But she was still in a coma.

Relena looked peaceful, sleeping there like that. Milliardo hardly ever left her side. Noin found it endearing. She often was with him when he visited. He'd also been sleeping in a spare room.

Lucrezia liked having Zechs around the house. He was good company, even if he didn't know how to interact for the life of him. Though, sometimes he went with her when she went to town.

It was like having her own bodyguard, even if he was still only her age. But that couldn't hide the athletic potential Noin saw in him. Even if he was awkward about it...

* * *

Noin kicked the ball toward him. He stared down at the toy for a minute before asking, "Um, what am I suppose to do with it?"

Noin's eyes widened unbelievingly. "You cong know how to play soccor?" She shook her head sadly. "Ah, to pity you. Come here, I'll teach you."

Milliardo's cheeks flushed as she came up beside him. She was very close, though seemingly, unknowingly. She shot him a smile. "Okay, what you wanna do is kick the ball. There are two goals. One's mine, the other's yours. Kick it into mine."

He pressed his lips together, forming a tight line. He shot his foot back and sent the ball hard. "Like that?" He asked after getting his goal.

Noin sensed he really meant it. She smiled fondly at him. "Yeah, you're really great at this game. Wanna play for real?"

Milliardo nodded. He'd do anything at the moment so long as it took his mind off Relena. And tonight.

After all, tonight was the night he had to leave. He wished he could stay with Noin and her mother for longer, but it was too dangerous keeping to one house for too long. He had to leave.

He couldn't fight the feeling that Noin would be hurt by his sudden absence. He'd come to like listening to her stories and loved telling her some of his own. She also happened to be very receptive, listening as though her very life depended on it.

His mind was jerked to the present when he heard her scream, "Hey, Zechs, you okay?! You look like you've seen a ghost."

He smiled to show her it was nothing.

Well, he might be leaving tonight, but the least he could do for her now was to play along with her and face the game ahead.

* * *

It was midnight as Milliardo crept through the empty halls. His feet made no sound as he moved. He had made sure to leave a note in his room, on his bed.

Noin would see it later. He felt his stomach clench with guilt as he walked away. How would she take this? Would it hurt her? Would she be okay?

Milliardo exhaled gently. He didn't even realize he'd been holding his breathe. No, of course she wouldn't be okay. Who could be okay when their seemingly only friend was leaving without saying goodbye?

No, Lucrezia would hurt. Zechs only hoped it wouldn't be too much.

A small, pale girl stared after him as he reached the front door. She ducked back behind the corner as he turned around. "See you, gentle home," he whispered. "Relena."

With that, he turned and left.

A soft ghost - like smile touched Noin's face. "I see, Zechs," she whispered back to him.

She only hoped he could hear her.


End file.
